For the second straight week Football Friday has landed on a holiday, and for the second straight week you've showed your odd sense of loyalty and lack of direction by visiting the Grill Room.

Welcome.

If you brought the new year in right, chances are you are moving rather slowly today. Well, take a load off while we recommend a Bloody Mary (heavy on the horseradish) to go with our usual Friday fare.

We've kept the menu rather light today because we know you've got a big day of college football ahead of you. Just make sure you are both clever and polite while evading any and all family obligations.

Dive in, drink up, and grab the remote and a generous chunk of the couch. Why should this year be any different than the others, right?

Happy New Year and prost!

Take your pickFor informational purposes only...some picks for Week 17 action around the NFL brought to you by folks who most likely know as much about the game as you do:

This week's 100-proof lock brought to you by the Grill Room:
Well, despite our late-season woes-woes-woes around here, we did come
through on Christmas when we gave you the Chargers over the Titans all
wrapped in swaddling and what-not.

So
why not bring the new year in with a bang, right? Heck, if we keep this
up, this might become a go-to place for you come playoff time. And,
yes, despite the fact our service has been about as organized and
dependable as the Giants defense lately, we will be around for the
playoffs, unlike those impostors in blue.

Unfortunately, the
final Sunday of the season is the most dangerous day of the year for
the astute handicapper. Lucky for us, then, that nobody will dare
accuse us of being very astute. Anyway, it's impossible to tell
which teams have packed it away for the year, which teams will pack it
away for a week to ready themselves for the playoffs, and which teams
are still oddly motivated despite having nothing to play for.

We'll dive into that final odd category to tap this week's selection...For
about the last 11 weeks or so, we've been hearing about how motivated
the Falcons are to have their first back-to-back winning seasons...ever.Seriously,
the team's been in Atlanta 44 years and has never put two winning
seasons together. Where's Sherman when you need him?

With all
that rotten history on the line, the 8-7 Falcons will be in Tampa Bay
Sunday and playing a Bucs team that lately has been doing its best to
blow a golden opportunity to land Bill Cowher as its next coach by
playing too hard for this dude named Raheem Morris.

Well, we say
that Tampa Bay will wake up, smell the coffee and finally quit
appropriately on their hard-working, under-qualified coach. Meantime,
the Falcons will play like the dickens to get that winning season that
means so much to them and them only. Take the Falcons and lay the 1.5.

See you next week. Yes, that is a threat.

(Season record: 7-10)

Tape it up

Want to know the status of the nicked-up players around the league? Then go here.

TV Time

If you can't stop by the Grill Room, here's the college and pro football fare that's cooking on the tube this holiday week:(For
our U.S. military viewers and their families overseas, the American
Forces Network will be televising every bowl game. The NFL games that
will be televised are in bold.)